Review Blog

Sep 15 2015

The Almost King by Lucy Saxon

Bloomsbury 2015. ISBN 9781408847701
(Age: Middle school) Adventure, fantasy, relationships, family. Set
in the storm bound world of Tellus Lucy Saxon's sequel to Take
Back the Skies introduces Aleks Vasin of Siberene. 17 year old
Aleks doesn't want to spend the rest of his life working in the
family shop, a burden to his struggling family, always in the shadow
of his older brothers so he runs away to join the army.
Unfortunately he signs up at the notoriously corrupt Rensav training
camp where he is robbed and abused. Escaping with his horse he heads
for the capital, Syvana where he hopes to hide among the crowds.
Aleks is very fortunate and finds strangers offer kindness and
support including a room at an inn with stabling for his horse in
exchange for helping out with the chores. He also finds work with an
eccentric inventor who is working on constructing a small, fast
airship to explore beyond the storm barriers and he meets Saria who
quickly becomes his girlfriend. Everything seems to be going his way
until Shulga, a corrupt Kingsguard officer, tracks him down. Escape
in the experimental airship leads to adventure and exploration
beyond Aleks' wildest dreams. While set in the same world this
sequel has little connection with Saxon's first novel apart from the
steampunkish skyships and strange mismatch of technologies. Aleks,
like the plot, seems to lack direction and development but those
middle school girls and boys who enjoyed the first book will enjoy
his adventures and look forward to the next Tellus sequel.
Sue Speck